Cong meeting discusses strategy for MCD elections

The central leadership of the Congress on Tuesday convened a meeting of all Delhi MLAs to take stock of the preparedness for the forthcoming MCD elections and to draw a strategy for the polls.

It was decided in the meeting that none of the tainted councilors would be given a party ticket and the focus would be to give chance to fresh candidates. The party would prepare a database of all the candidates and weigh their merits and demerits before doling out the prized party ticket. It was decided that the performance of each sitting councilor would be assessed and the MLAs would be consulted.

As each MLA would now have four municipal wards under his/her jurisdiction, the opinion of the MLA would be crucial in determining the party nomination. Several MLAs said in the meeting that they should be consulted before anyone is given the party ticket in his/her area.

AICC general secretary in-charge of Delhi, Ashok Gehlot presided over the meeting. Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, her Cabinet colleagues, DPCC president Ram Babu Sharma and a majority of the 47 Congress MLAs participated in the discussion.

The legislators wanted that an effort should be made to give maximum relief to the people through the Master Plan to bring back the voters to the Congress. One of the MLA suggested that the MPD should be delayed and notified only after the municipal polls as "it might not meet the expectations of the people and will go against the party".

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit said the suggestions of the MLAs have been sent to the Centre for approval and the government was following it up. However, Congress MLA Subhash Chopra said the legislators were not consulted at the time of doubling the seats of the corporation to 272.

The government has to give the poll schedule of MCD to the Delhi High Court later this month amidst apprehension in some political sections that the polls might be delayed.